- Jackson Pollock was an influential American painter, and the leading force behind the abstract expressionist movement in the art world. - Jackson Pollock was born in Cody, Wyoming in 1912 - Expressionists, anxiously aware of human irrationality and vulnerability, expressed their concerns in an abstract art that chronicled the ardor and exigencies of modern life. - His famous quote was "The painting has a life of it's own. I try to let it come through" - Jackson Pollock is known as a leader in the most important 20th century American art movements.